Meet the Ships

The following are examples of ships participating in the Rendez-Vous 2017 Tall Ships Regatta making landfall in Boston in June, 2017. We will update this page as vessels are confirmed and added to the event.

Gulden Leeuw

The "Gulden Leeuw" (Golden Lion) is a fast, robust ship that can really sail. She’s a three-masted topsail schooner, and the foremast is also yard-rigged. This versatile rigging combines the advantages of a square-rig with those of a fore-and-aft rigged ship. She can sail close to the breeze and also run fast with the wind and seas astern.

Her atmosphere recalls the style of the 1930’s. On the one hand, expensive, rich materials, hand-crafted, decorative and luxurious. On the other hand, simple, functional forms that make sense for life at sea. The ship was built in 1937 and is in the process of being restored to her original splendor.

La Union

The Peruvian “Unión” is a four-masted frigate with a length of 99-meters (325 ft.) and a beam of 13.5 m (44.3 ft.), making it the second largest active sailing vessel in the world. It has a total sail surface of 3,400 m2 (37,000 sq ft) and is designed for a crew of 250. Construction of La Union began in 2012 and the vessel was launched in December 2014.

Esmerelda

The ship is the sixth to carry the name Esmeralda. The first was the frigate Esmeralda captured from the Spanish at Callao, Peru, by Admiral Lord Thomas Alexander Cochrane of the Chilean Navy, in a bold incursion on the night of 5 November 1820. The second was the corvette Esmeralda of the Chilean Navy which, set against superior forces, fought until sunk with colors flying on 21 May 1879 at the Battle of Iquique. These events mark important milestones for the Chilean Navy and the ship's name is said to evoke its values of courage and sacrifice.

Esmerelda was launched as a fourmasted topsail schooner on 12 May 1953 and was delivered to the Government of Chile on 15 June 1954.

Alexander von Humbolt II

ALEXANDER von HUMBOLDT II has been sailing since 2011.

She is a civilian square rigger offering tall ship voyages for everyone, regardless of previous experience. She is a traditional barque rig, which means the fore and main masts carry square sails while the mizzen mast carries gaff sails. In total, ALEX-2 is driven by 24 sails and can cruise at up to 14 knots.

While the rigging resembles that of a windjammer built 150 years ago, her onboard equipment is state-of-the-art, featuring radar, satellite communication, electronic charts, life rafts and two high speed dinghies.

ALEX-2 is owned and operated by Deutsche Stiftung Sail Training (German Sail Training Foundation / DSST), based in the barque’s homeport of Bremerhaven. DSST is a non-profit, charitable organization offering traditional high-seas sailing for people of all ages.

Europa

“The Barque “EUROPA”, built in 1911, is a well known Tall Ship. Since 1994 she has taken part in Tall Ship Races all over the World, from Europe to South Korea, Japan, the United States and Canada.

It’s no wonder she’s earned the nickname “Ocean Wanderer.”

Although not the largest ship in the fleet, EUROPA is very much appreciated for the atmosphere on board as well as her looks. Everything about her gives the impression that she is a true sailing ship from a forgotten era: the rope work on deck, the woodwork inside and out, the pictures in the Deckhouse and of course the three traditionally rigged masts of which 2 are square rigged.

Oosterschelde

Oosterschelde was built in the Netherlands in 1918 at the order of the Rotterdam shipping company HAAS and is the last remaining representative of the large fleet of schooners that sailed under the Dutch flag at the beginning of the 20th century.

Her name is derived from the eastern part of the Schelde river that flows from France through Belgium and the Netherlands. She is the largest estored Dutch sailing ship, and a monument to Dutch shipbuilding.

As a freighter Oosterschelde carried some hundred tons of cargo including bricks, herring and bananas. In 1921, the ship was sold, changing hands three times before being restored to her former glory in 1988.